252 



HOKTlCUI^lURf. 



August 24, 1907 



The Committee presents a tentative 

 plan, and it is the sense of this Com- 

 mittee that the onlj- practical way is 

 to start with one State at a time, and 

 we propose to have this bill passed 

 by the Legislature of the State of 

 New York. If there is any other State 

 that the Society thinks would be pre- 

 ferable, the Committee has no objec- 

 tion. 



As the Massachusetts Horticultural 

 Society makes the broad statement 

 (quoted in our report of last year) that 

 its aim is to give every school in Mas- 

 sachusetts a garden and every child a 

 home-garden, it might be more feasi- 

 ble to have this bill adopted by the 

 Legislature of that State. 



Following Mr. Hallock's paper W. B. 

 Du Rie presented interesting remarks 

 on the same topic as representing the 

 special committee on the school gar- 

 den movement appointed in connec- 

 tion with the discussion of the presi- 

 dent's address. This was followed by 

 an earnest discussion which continued 

 until the appearance of the tellers 

 prepared to announce the result of the 

 vote for officers. The fortunate candi- 

 dates were F. H. Traendly, New York, 

 president; George W. McClure, Buf- 

 falo, vice-president; P. J. Hauswirth, 

 secretary; H. B. Beatty, treasurer. 

 The only contest was on the presi- 

 dency and upon the declaring of the 

 vote Mr. Freeman took the floor and 

 moved a unanimous election for his 

 opponent on the ticket, which was car- 

 ried amid great enthusiasm. The sev- 

 eral candidates were presented on the 

 platform and each made neat speeches 

 of acceptance. J. D. Carmody then 

 claimed the platform, which was ac- 

 corded, and in a characteristic, kindly 

 speech he presented to President 

 Stewart on behalf of the Society mem- 

 bers a solid silver set of knives, forks 

 and spoons of great beauty. Mr. 

 Stewart tried to respond, but found 

 only halting words to express his feel- 

 ings, as he referred to the enforced 

 absence of his partner because of 

 severe illness, and tried to voice his 

 thanks for this gift which would be 

 jointly enjoyed. 



HORTICULTURAL EDUCATION 



By Horticultural Societies and Clubs, 



Including a Review of the Work 



of the Boston Landscape Class. 



Paper by J. K. M. L. Farquhar read at S. 

 A. F. Convention, Philadephia. 



It is ■indoubtedly true that all Ameri- 

 can horticultural societies and clubs 

 have endeavored to promote Interest 

 in, and knowledge of horticulture. It 

 is a,lso true that the efforts of these 

 organizations have resulted in great 

 advancemtnt along the lines they have 

 worked. If, for the sake of illustration, 

 we regard the field of horticulture as 

 a complete circle, we find well defined 

 lines running from its centre to the 

 circumference in many directions, but, 

 unfortunately we also find too many of 

 the 360 degrees of its circuDifei ence to 

 which as yet there appear no lines, 

 vast fields of horticultural science 

 which have hardly been trodden upon 

 in this country. Considering the 

 phenomenal successes wo have de- 

 veloped along the lines wliicU we have 

 explored, it seems all tha more re- 

 grettable that oui- efforts have not 

 been more distributed. 



The keen watchfulness, zealous ap- 



plication and enterprise of the Ameri- 

 can florist have given him, in a single 

 generation, first rank in the world in 

 the production of roses, carnations, 

 chrysanthemums, violets, sweet peas, 

 asparagus ard other plants in which 

 he has specialized, and his intimate 

 knowledge of the requirements of his 

 subjects, gained by close personal ob- 

 servation to which his accomplish- 

 ments are chieliy due. has rarely been 

 equalled by his fellow-craftsmen 

 abroad. This aptitude and past suc- 

 cess make it quite obvious that he can 

 achieve similar progress in new lines. 



The florists have not hesitated to 

 impart freely through talks and es- 

 says at horticultural meetings, the 

 knowledge they have gained of their 

 specialties. The nurserymen too have 

 ocasionally given valuable information 

 on trees and slirubs and how to use 

 them. Likewise the fruit and vegetable 

 growers have most freely imparted the 

 knowledge they have acquired. Again, 

 the members of every horticultural 

 society in the land have listened to 

 predictions of despoliation by blight 

 and insect until in dread of calamity 

 their faces have become white and 

 their lips blue like the trees and crops 

 whitened with arsenate of lead or 

 blued with copper sulphate. 



But you will ask me, — "What about 

 the untrodden fields?" 



In the flower line there are many 

 things yet untried which may and will 

 be used both in commercial and priv- 

 ate establishments. We have seen 

 larkspurs, lupins, scabious, corn-flow- 

 ers, schizanthiis, leptosyne, etc., grown 

 lor winter-cutting as successfully as 

 roses and carnations. 



We force a few perennial plants 

 like dielytra and spiraea, but how sel- 

 dom do we hear of the campanulas, 

 foxgloves, sweet-williams, trollius. 

 Daphne cneorum, the Christmas rose 

 and many other suitable biennials and 

 perennials being forced, notwithstand- 

 ing an existing and growing demand 

 for greater variety and novelty in 

 winter flowers. 



I have alluded to talks on fruits and 

 vegetables and their culture. Who has 

 ever suggested the prolific and delici- 

 ous Lichee of southern China or the 

 delicate naseberry of the West Indies 

 as subjects, for culture under glass like 

 the peach and nectarine, or, which of 

 our vegetable experts has taken pains 

 to advance our knowledge of salad 

 plants or of herbs for seasoning, in 

 both of which subjects we know much 

 less than did the Romans when they 

 occupied the northern shores of the 

 Mediterranean two thousand years ago. 



This is the day of progress and hor- 

 ticulture must and will advance in 

 many heretofore neglected lines. 



Generally speaking, it can best be ad- 

 vanced through the instrumentality 

 of the all-round trained gardener. How 

 many of our foremost florists have 

 risen from the ranks of the private 

 gardeners? Mr. Peter Fisher of Car- 

 nation fame, Mr. M. H. Walsh and 

 Mr. Alexander Montgomery, whose 

 names are garlanded with roses, are 

 notable examples and there are others 

 too numerous to be referred to in- 

 dividually now. I am satisfied that 

 this is the clay to stir the gardener to 

 new activities, his opportunities for 

 advancing both himself and his pro- 

 fession were never so good; besides 

 too, he must look to his position — a 



certain kind of landscape architect 

 seeks to outstrip him and wrest from 

 him the laurels and emoluments of 

 his art. That which the gardener 

 from his long practice a.nd intimate 

 acquaintance of his material, knows 

 almost intuitively, this kind of land- 

 scape architect gathers a superficial, 

 talking knowledge of from his books, 

 and immediately begins to practice 

 theoretically. His clients and the 

 gardeners are usually the sufferers. 

 Never has there been such an effort 

 on the part of these impractical, book- 

 made, self-styled experts to subordin- 

 ate the practical gardener as at the 

 present time. 



M'e have many progressive trained 

 gardeners, who are much more com- 

 petent to lay out and plant a place 

 than the mere graduate of a college 

 landscape school. The gardener may 

 not be able to make as attractive a 

 plan, nor to talk so fluently of harmony 

 of color, contrast of form, of light and 

 shadow as the college man, but he 

 knows how the grade should be, how 

 to prepare the soil, how to plant the 

 trees and shrubs and he has genius to 

 plant a picture of such beauty, of 

 such harmony, of such strengtli so 

 exactly the complement of its setting, 

 tiiat beside it the labored composition 

 of a college stripling is a helpless 

 misfit. Do not imagine, however, that 

 I underestimate the value and advant- 

 age of the horticultural school course 

 provided it is a practical one and sup- 

 plemented by actual garden work, but 

 ] would rather trust with the arrang- 

 ing of a garden a man who has been 

 taught to use the spade properly and 

 who has a natural love of nature, 

 than the horticultural school graduate 

 who has learned to pot plants with 

 gloves on. 



It was with the view of bringing tho 

 best young gardeners to the front, to 

 encourage them and qualify them for 

 the opportunities open to them, that 

 about a year ago, the Boston Land- 

 scape Class was organized. The class 

 numbered about sixty members most- 

 ly working gardeners — many of them 

 head men filling positions of respon- 

 sibility, others assistants. It met 

 twice a week, with an average at- 

 tendance of about forty. 



The subjects taken up the first year, 

 included geometry, topographical draw- 

 ing, projection, prospective, grades, 

 harmony of color, landscape composi- 

 tion and the use of the level. The 

 instruction was supplemented by field 

 days for out-door demonstration and 

 practice. 



It is intended to extend the course 

 over three years in which time the 

 members should become thoroughly 

 acquaintd with the practice and theory 

 of general landscape gardening. 



The better class of landscape gar- 

 deners or architects will find the mem- 

 bers of the Boston Landscape Class 

 in no way opposed to them, but by 

 their study better able to understand 

 each other and co-operate to the 

 mutual advantage of both when their 

 woik brings them together. At the 

 .■<ame time, the gardener who has thus 

 hppome fnmiliar with both the pract- 

 ice and tlieory of landscape work will 

 never give place to the book-made 

 adventurer of the average superficial 

 and impractical, two or sometimes 

 three year landscape college course 

 of the present time. 



